


The Kangaroo Court of Detective Daniel Williams

by ERamos9696



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-14
Updated: 2018-04-14
Packaged: 2019-04-22 22:40:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14318607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ERamos9696/pseuds/ERamos9696
Summary: Danny thinks he can finally be happy with everything falling into place as it should, except for the nagging little voice keeping him up all hours of the night that keeps telling him he doesn't deserve it.  Steve makes a plan to help Danny get out of his head before Danny's lack of sleep gets them both killed.





	The Kangaroo Court of Detective Daniel Williams

**Author's Note:**

  * For [happy29](https://archiveofourown.org/users/happy29/gifts).



 

Steve came through Danny’s office door like he owned the place.  He is the head of the Governor’s Special task force but that didn’t mean that he held the deed for the Palace. Danny looked up from his computer screen.  He wouldn’t have been able to tell you what he was staring into, but Steve was a welcomed distraction although he would never let him know that.

“We were both drunk.”  

Danny knew exactly what Steve was talking about.  Apparently it was time for the conversation to happen.  “Well, you were a little bit more drunk than I was.”

“This is not a contest, Daniel.”  Steve caught himself saying the words as they came out of his mouth.  It was almost always a contest. “Do you want to hear what I have to say or do you want to keep avoiding the subject like we have been for the last two weeks?”

“First, I am not avoiding the subject.  I have needed time to process the entire situation. Second-”

Steve interrupted with his standard, “Oye Vey.”  He dragged the chair over to Danny and took his seat.  “Can you tell me what number you are planning to get to?  I can check my emails while you do that Danny thing you do.”  Steve took out his phone pretending to do just that.

“Fine.”

“Fine?”

“Fine.”

Steve put down his phone and smiled with his small victory.  “Okay. Alright. Progress. We were both drunk that night and yes, I might have had a bit more to drink than you.”

Danny took that statement as a win. “I'm glad you admit it.”

Steve wasn’t going to let Danny gloat much longer.  “Anyway, the kiss, although it was not the way I planned for it to happen, I'm happy it did happen.”

Danny took a second to process the comment.  “What? No! Don't come into my office and act like you are okay with this, you control freak.  Don't act like this was part of some plan you have had in the works. I refuse to believe that!”

“Why?  You haven't felt like there has been something going on between us for quite sometime now?”  Steve’s logic was simple.

Danny tried to rub his temples to relieve himself of the aggravation he was about to endure.  “Really? Steven, we are not gay.”

“We were that night.”  Again, simple logic.

Still holding his head, he replied, “No. You can’t turn it off and on.”  

“Danno, we both went to college.”

Where was Steve going with this?  “And?”

“You know?”

Danny did not know.  “What?”

“What, what?”

This was all too familiar.  “Stop!”

Steve was nowhere near stopping.  He had been trying to come up with the right place and time to have this conversation and Danny demanding for him to stop was the last thing he wanted to do. “I read online that men have gone gay for each other.”

The research that Steve claimed to have done to justify a drunken kiss didn’t sit well with Danny.  “Steven, we’re not gay. And we are not going gay for each other.”

“Okay, we don’t have to put a label on it.”

This was enough for Danny to start with the hands.  “There is no _it_. We were drunk.  We were flirting and handsy and dancing and laughing.”  Danny paused to process what he was saying.

“Then what’s wrong?”

“There’s nothing wrong.”  

“I don’t think it’s wrong.”  Steve wasn’t budging on this one.

“Stop.”  It was more of a plead than a demand.  Danny wasn’t sure if he had lost his train of thought in the conversation.  “I don’t think there is anything wrong with the fact that we kissed. I liked it.  I liked it a lot.”

Steve was more than excited to hear that response but noticed that neither Danny’s body posture or facial expression changed.  “I just thought if we talked about this, you would feel better.”

“Look, there’s nothing wrong with me,” Danny lied.

“I think there is.  You’ve been off.” Steve was right.

“Off?”

“Off.”

“I’m fine.”  Danny knew Steve knew it was all a lie.  

“Whatever.  You don’t want to talk about it.  Fine. But you have been off. More grumpy.  You know, more you.” Steve wanted to continue but Grover’s opening of Danny’s office door put the conversation on pause.

“If you two lovebirds can take a timeout, we caught a case.”  

Steve was right.  Danny knew. It had nothing to do with the kiss.  It began after the kiss. Danny started to feel that he wanted the kiss and everything that followed a kiss, whatever that was, with Steve, and more of it.  Then the little voice came to him. Then the nightmares. Then the feeling of overwhelming guilt. He hadn’t slept through a whole night since they returned from San Francisco for Chin’s wedding.  He knew he was _off_ , but he wasn’t sure how to be _on_ again.

~*~  

“You need to slow down.”  Steve kept pressing on the non-existent brake on the passenger side of the Camaro.

“Uncle Steve, if I go any slower, I’ll be in reverse.”  Gracie could feel the tension coming from her Uncle Steve’s side of the car.

“Great to see you have your father’s sense of humor,” Steve rolled his eyes.

“I’m not joking.  That jogger just passed us.”  She pointed past him.

“Keep both eyes on the road.”  Steve did everything in his power to not grab the steering wheel. “Both hands on the wheel would be a good idea as well.”

Gracie was thrown by the comment.  “Both eyes? Is there another way to do it?”

“Enough with the Williams snark and just watch the road.”  Steve was stern enough to get his point across but it was still said with love.  “How did I ever convince Danno to let me teach you how to drive?”

Gracie pulled over to the side of the road and put the car in park.  She looked over to Steve trying to find the right words, but got out of the car instead.

“Gracie?”  He was confused.  He didn’t know what he had said to make Gracie do what she did.  “Gracie, baby. What’s wrong?” Steve joined her at the hood of the Camaro.

“I’m not supposed to tell you.”

Steve felt a sharp pain in his gut almost terrified of what Gracie would say next.  “What is it, Gracie?” Steve was wondering if he was going to have to go home and get his gun.  His backup piece was locked in the trunk just in case if what she said was so bad that he couldn’t make it all the way home.

“I think Danno might be sick or something.”

The relief came to Steve instantly.

“He’s been up all hours of the night.  I don’t think he sleeps anymore. A couple of nights ago, I heard him crying on the couch.  When I asked him what was wrong, he said he didn’t know.”

Steve became worried again.

“The next morning he told me that nobody needed to know about him crying.”

Steve saw the concern in Gracie’s eyes.

“I haven’t heard him cry that hard since the night he told me he and my mom were getting a divorce.”

Steve took Gracie into his arms not knowing what to say.

“He’s never lied to me, Uncle Steve.  I don’t think he knows what is wrong with him.”

~*~

Steve pulled the Camaro into Danny’s driveway to find a frustrated Rachel pounding on the front door.  

Charlie let go of her hand to run and hug Gracie.  “Where’s Danno?”

Gracie didn’t want to let on that she was concerned.  “He’s probably taking a nap. Do you want to take a nap?”

Charlie giggled out a _no_.  Charlie stood before Steve knowing that he was going to get lifted up to plant a kiss on Uncle Steve’s cheek and then put back down again.

“I can hear the television.  If he doesn’t want to greet me at the door, he can have Gracie fetch Charlie at the car.”  Rachel left Steve standing there unable to give a response.

Steve unlocked the door asking both kids to give him a moment.  Neither of them thought anything of it. Charlie had started a conversation about being hungry and Gracie was making idle threats of feeding him spinach and broccoli.

The television was on, but Danny was nowhere to be found.  After Steve knew that Danny was not in the living room he asked both kids to wait for him on the couch.  

Gracie was now making threats of liver ice-cream which Charlie begged not to be forced to eat.

Steve walked into the kitchen to find Danny staring at the oven.

“Hey, Danny,” he spoke softly as to not to get an elbow to the jaw.

Danny didn’t respond.

Steve stepped in front of the oven.  “Danny?”

This snapped Danny out of his trance, a little startled at first, but then he tried to play it off.  “How was the driving lesson?”

Steve looked Danny over to make sure there were no wounds to be tended to.  “Great. What are you doing?”

“Getting dinner ready for the kids.  Charlie should be here soon.”

Steve looked at the bare counter.  He took Danny by the shoulder, “Rachel was knocking at the door when we got here.  You sure you’re okay?”

Danny tried to compute what he was hearing, but answered, “I guess I’m tired.  I haven’t been getting a lot of sleep lately.”

Steve wanted to accept that answer, especially after what Gracie had told him earlier.  “Babe, I’m going to take the kids to dinner. You are going to go to bed. But first, I’m going to have them come in and say goodnight to you.  Can you do that without scaring them?”

Danny wanted to act offended but he knew Steve was right.  “Sure.”

Steve called for the kids, both came running into the kitchen happy to see Danno and greeted him with the usual hugs and kisses.  Steve told them both of the plans to go to Zippy’s so _Danno could get some rest._

“Gracie, baby, put Charlie into the car.  I will be out there in a minute.”

Gracie and Charlie kissed their father goodnight and Gracie did as she was asked.

Steve took Danno by the hand and walked him to the bedroom.  Danny didn’t try to pull his hand away or make a scene out of something that was a very sweet moment indeed.  Instead, Danny put his head on his pillow and let Steve take the shoes off his feet.

“Get some rest, Buddy.  I’ll check in on you when we get home.  Okay?”

Steve leaned in and put his hand on Danny’s cheek. It was Steve’s way of letting Danny know he was still there.

Danny didn’t answer though.  The pillow had done its job and he fell asleep before Steve could turn off the bedroom light.

That night Steve kept the kids in smiles and laughs listening and hanging on their every word of what the week promised them not letting on that he was concerned about Danny.  Gracie kept thanking her Uncle Steve for the driving lesson and he promised there were many more to follow. Charlie asked if he could have driving lessons as well. Steve promised there would be, in a hundred years, when he was old enough to drive.  Charlie tried to do the numbers but trusted his Uncle Steve’s mathematics. There were a few times that Gracie made eye contact that made Steve feel that she knew exactly what he was doing and she appreciated the effort. There was something going on with his partner, his best friend, the father of these beautiful children that he loved so very much.  He needed to help him.

After one too many bites of the fully loaded Hawaiian brownie, the sugar coma hit Charlie and he passed out in Steve’s arms.  Gracie laughed as she watched her uncle try to get all the crumbs off Charlie’s face and the crumbs on his ears.

By the time they got back to the house, Steve had to carry Charlie into the bedroom and get him dressed for bed.  He kissed the mini-Danny on the top of his head and promised that he would see him in the morning.

“Pancakes?”

“Chocolate-chip pancakes,” he promised.

He walked into Gracie’s room to find her struggling with the power cradle on her nightstand.  Steve walked over to her bed and she scooted herself over without being told. Steve reached behind the nightstand and untangled the wires so that the cradle could be put back in its place.  Steve took the phone from Gracie’s hand and made sure that it was recharging. Grace let herself slide under the bed covers. Steve stood up and tucked her into bed and finished with a kiss to her head as he had done all the nights that she spent at his house.  

“I love you, Gracie.”

She reached out grabbing his shirt.  “Fix him, Uncle Steve, please.”

“I will, Baby, I promise.”  He had never broken a promise to his Gracie.

“I love you too.  Thank you.”

He turned off her bedroom light and walked down the hall to Danny’s room.  Danny had changed into his soft sweats and was sleeping shirtless on the right side of the bed.  The blankets were pulled back as if Danny had left them that way for Steve to join him.

_Message received._

Steve went to his truck to get his go-bag from the cab.  He had already decided that he was spending the night, but he had not thought the night would be going in this direction.  He walked back through the bedroom into the bathroom and showered. He turned off the light and made himself comfortable in the bed.  

“I thought you left.”  Danny’s eyes were drooping as he made the comment.

“No.  I thought you wanted me to stay.”

“I do.”

“I am.”

Danny slid himself into Steve’s side.  

Steve knew that they would be perfectly fitted together if this ever happened.  He wrapped his arm around Danny pulling him in even closer. “Did you get any sleep?”

“A little.  I guess knowing that you had the kids, I was able to let go.”

“Can you tell me what’s going on?”  Steve pulled Danny in more.

“I’m not sure I know.” Danny turned his head to look at Steve.  “You know I would tell you, right?”

“Okay.”  Steve kissed the base of Danny’s neck.  He could feel Danny becoming more at ease in his hold.  Danny pulled Steve down so their lips could meet. It was more of a goodnight kiss and both men were satisfied.  “Danny, I think that you might need some help, okay?”

“Right now, you are all the help I need.  Can we do _this_ without doing this?”

Steve was going to have to settle for that for now.  Knowing that Danny was in his arms made him feel a little bit better, but it was going to take more than doing _this_.

~*~

“You hit?  You okay? Let me look. Okay? Let me see!”  Steve scanned and pulled at Danny’s vest looking for anything that might need his immediate attention.  

“I’m fine!”  Danny slapped Steve’s hands away from him.

“You’re fine?”  Steve ducked for cover as more bullets flew past his head.  “You’re fine? Okay, how did you not see that guy?” Steve returned fire hitting his target with three to the chest.  

“Not now.”  Danny returned the same look of disappointment that Steve was giving him.  

“Boss!” Junior screamed over the comms.  

Steve held his earpiece in place, “Junior, Tani, on my go!  Lou cover me.”

“I can cover you!”  Danny was offended at the previous order.  

“No.  No you can’t. Try not to get dead before I come back.”  Steve gave the command to his team and he was gone.

Danny tried stay put, but seriously, _try not to get dead?_

Both men were quiet the entire drive home. Steve had Tani and Junior to process the scene and Lou told both of them that he would start with the reports for Duke. Anything needing a signature from Commander McGarrett could wait until morning.  Danny followed Steve into the kitchen and took his place on the countertop. Steve grabbed them both a beer.

Danny took a pull from his Longboard.  “Go ahead.”

“What the fuck was that, Danny?  Were you waiting for him to miss you another three times before you fired back?”

Danny knew Steve wasn’t done yet.

“It was like watching everything in slow motion.  And there you are with your gun in your hand, just staring at him.”  Steve took Danny’s beer out of his hand and placed both bottles on the counter.  He slid in between Danny’s legs and leaned in to whisper into his partner’s ear, “What would I have told your babies if I had lost you today?”  Steve had to whisper it because this was something that they should never ask aloud. The mere thought of it could bring both men crumbling to their knees.

Danny made a weak attempt to push Steve back.  “Don’t do that.”

Steve didn’t stop. “What would you have told them if something had happened to me because you didn’t have my back?”  Steve pulled back to see the tears running down Danny’s cheeks causing his own eyes to well up.

“I’m sorry.”

“I don’t want _sorry_ , Danny.  You need help.  You haven’t been sleeping.  Your body's here but I have no idea where your head is.  Maybe what is happening with us is too much for you to handle?”  Steve was terrified in asking that question because if the answer was _yes_ , his world would be over.

Danny let his head fall onto Steve’s shoulder.  “I know I want us to be together. After Chin’s wedding, that night, I was happy, Steve, so happy.  I went to sleep thinking that it was my turn to have it all. But that night something happened. It’s like a little voice came into my head telling me that I couldn’t win.  Then the nightmares. Everything was on repeat telling me I didn’t deserve you.”

“That’s ridiculous Danno, you’re the best man I know.  I want you to be happy. I’ve always told you that. And now I want to be happy with you.”

“And then today, I knew what it was.  I don’t deserve you because of Reyes.”

Steve stepped back to make sure he was hearing him right.  Marco Reyes was a distant memory. Something that they hadn’t discussed in years.  Steve let the shock on his face go before he said, “Danny, he deserved what he got.”

Danny finally looked up and let his legs pull Steve in closer to him.  “I know that. So why is this happening?”

“I don’t know, Babe.”

“And it is making me sick, Steve.  I know I need help.”

Both men stood there at the counter hugging each other as if letting go would cause the other to leave.  

~*~

“And the nightmares have been getting worse?”  Their therapist scribbled something down on her notepad.

“Sometimes.”

“Well, I’m happy you called me.  It shows how much this partnership has grown over the past few years.”

“Thanks for seeing us,” both men said in unison.

“Please gentlemen, you don’t think that I would make time for two of law enforcement's finest that has done so much for the state of Hawaii?”

Both men were very appreciative for her kind words.

“Detective Williams, whatever it is that you did to this man in Colombia, both of you agree that the measures you took were justified, but I need to tell you, from what you were able to tell me today, I’m not convinced that you believe that.”

“He deserved everything he got.” Steve reacted to the comment with bitterness in his voice.

“Commander, I believe you believe that.  But I don’t see the same resolve from your partner.  Is that true, Detective Williams?”

Steve turned to Danny for him to reaffirm what she was saying was completely wrong.

Danny turned to him and stuttered, “Maybe she’s right?”

Now Steve was perplexed.  “We’ve talked about this. After you came home from that other thing in Colombia, you were good again.”

“But your partner is in a different place now.  You mentioned that you are both working on opening your restaurant.  His children see him more now than they did before. He ended the relationship that he felt was going nowhere.  And the last piece of the puzzle that makes his life complete is being compromised by his not accepting he is deserving of being truly happy.”  She leaned in and directed her attention to Danny. “Until you accept that you did the right thing, the only thing you could do to this man, you Detective Williams, will continue to sabotage yourself.”

“How do I do that?”

“I’m not sure Detective Williams.  But if I know you and your partner, you will both figure it out together.”  She ripped the current page of her notes out and threw it into the trash to be shredded.  “I don’t think we need to save any notes from this session.”

She walked back to her desk and gave Steve a business card.  “Commander, after you handle this situation, I am recommending that you continue your therapy together with a colleague of mine.  My focus is working on professional partnerships. It is obvious that you and Danny are more than friends now.”

Both men felt that they were caught at something they weren’t even sure they were trying to hide.

“Her name is Gail Sellz and she is an expert in working with new couples that are new to a lot of things when they become a couple.”

Both men stood and shook her hand.

“Doc, thanks.”  Steve wasn’t going to insult her by asking her how she knew.  He started to follow Danny to the door.

She pulled Steve aside.  “Commander, you will figure this out.”

Steve thanked her again with a smile and caught up with Danny.  He wasn’t sure if she was right.

~*~

Grace was having a fit at the dinner table making her point louder than she was before.  “You will both be gone for two days? I don’t like it.”

“I don’t like it either, Gracie.  He won’t tell me where we are going and please lower your voice.”

Gracie found that answer unacceptable as well.  She played with her meatloaf until the idea hit her.  “Are you two eloping?”

Both men nearly choked on their food.  

“What is loping?”  Charlie asked, trying not to knock more mashed potatoes off his fork.

“It’s when two people run off and get married without telling anybody.”

“Why do they have to run?”

Grace looked at both men to give Charlie the answer.  

Steve stood up and grabbed Charlie’s plate and hand.  “We are going to get some more mashed potatoes from the kitchen since most of Charlie’s are on the floor.”

Danny waited until they were both out of earshot.

“What is the matter with you?”

“Me?  I’m not the one eloping!  If Nahele was here, he would agree with me!”

“First of all, your Uncle Steve and I are not even dating.  Anyway, where would you get the idea that we were going to get married?”

“Get married?  You two have been married for years.  All you’re doing now is making it legal.”

“For the last time, Grace, we are not getting married.”

“Are so.”

“Are not.”  Danny gathered his composure.  “I’m not going to argue with my teenage daughter on something so absurd.”

“Danno, I’ve seen the way you say goodbye to each other.  The way Uncle Steve gives you a little kiss on the cheek as he is walking out the door.  You practically sit on top of each other when we stay home to watch a movie. Actually, that’s always been that way.  But I can tell, Danno.”

“Grace.”  Danny stopped.  He knew it was time to come clean.  “Gracie, sweetheart,” he took another breath, “you are indeed correct that your Uncle Steve and I have become closer.”

Gracie lifted an eyebrow.

“Okay, much closer.  But there are some issues that I have been trying to work on before Steve and I, how do you call it, _change our relationship status_.”

Grace rolled her eyes at her father.  Something that he was sure that she had learned from watching his partner.  “Danno, are you in love with him?”

“Of course I love him.”

Grace pulled at her own hair trying to keep herself from screaming.  “That’s not what I asked. _Are you in love with him_?”

Danny didn’t need to mull the question over.

“Yes.  But we are not running away to get married.”  He got up and was about to sit in Charlie’s chair until he noticed the mashed potatoes all over the seat.  He shook his head and grabbed for a napkin to clean up the mess. “All I know is that Steve has been planning something for the past couple of days.  He won’t tell me where we are going, only that after we get back, we will be ready to sit you and your brother down and probably Nahele too, and talk about this like a family.”

Grace helped Danny with another napkin.  “No wonder this kid is so skinny, all his food is on his chair.”

Danny leaned down to kiss his daughter.  “I love you, Monkey.”

“I know Danno.  I love you too. I just want you to get better.  Those dark circles around your eyes aren’t very flattering.  Am I going to inherit those too?” It was a serious question that she needed answered.

“Probably.”  Danny never lied to Grace and he wasn’t going to start now.

Grace shook her head in sheer disappointment.  

Steve and Charlie came out of the kitchen trying to sneak pass by Danny.

“And where are you two headed?”  Danny was a full-time detective and Steve was making it more than obvious that he had something to hide.  

The guilty party turned around to face him.  Charlie’s shirt was covered with ice-cream.

“That doesn’t look like mashed potatoes.”

“We had an ice-cream spill.”  Steve tried to say it as nonchalantly as possible.

“Ice-cream?  The kid hasn’t finished dinner, Steven.”

“Well, he didn’t finish the ice-cream either.”

Grace got up and walked over to her brother.  “I’ll clean him up and put him in his pajamas.”  She took his hand and walked him over to the guest room.  “Looks like bath time. We can play with all the toys Uncle Steve keeps in the tub for you.”

This was enough to make Charlie skip ahead of Grace.

Steve wrapped his arms around his partner from behind.  

Danny leaned back to acknowledge the embrace.  “Are you going to tell me where we are going?”

“Nope.  Do you trust me?”

“With my life.  With the lives of my children.”

This was enough to make Steve certain that he was doing the right thing.   “Nahele will be here after work. He is spending the night and then he will wait for Rachel to pick up the kids tomorrow morning.  We are leaving at 0400 hours.”

“Why can’t you say 4 am like normal people?  Why so early?”

“What does it matter?  It’s not like you are sleeping anyway?”  Steve turned his partner around. “What did you tell her?”

“Everything.”  Danny pulled his partner down into a kiss.  They were getting quite good at this in the past weeks.  “Are you sure this plan of yours is going to work?”

“It’s all I got, Danny.  It has to.” Steve sounded so desperate that it worried Danny as it should have.  “It’ll work,” he said to try to reassure him; to reassure himself as well.

~*~

Steve drove the truck into the private hanger.  Both men grabbed their bags from the cab.

“You chartered a plane?  A G-7?” Danny asked.

“No, I am borrowing it.”  Danny turned around to see Joe White standing before him.  

“Joe!”  Danny dropped his bag to hug him.  “How you been?” Danny, trying to put some of the pieces together got a little nervous.  “Steve, what’s going on? Why is Joe here?” Steve and Danny only called Joe for secret missions or missions that would get them killed.

“That’s classified, son,” Joe said in his military voice.

Steve smiled knowing how much that comment would aggravate Danny.  Before Danny could go into his rant, more trucks started to pull into the hanger.  Almost each truck had that _built to last_ look. From each truck, out came one or two men that all had that polished military look.   _Maybe all Navy SEALS are taught to like big trucks._

“Who are all your friends, Steven?”

Each man came up to Steve and Danny and shook their hands, taking the time to introduce themselves as, “You can call me…”  It wasn’t long before Danny noticed that they were all using names from the television show, _Friends_.

The last man in line stood before Steve and Danny and shook their hands a little longer than the other men did.  “Sirs, it is both an honor and a pleasure to meet you.”

“How so, Phoebees, is it?” asked Danny knowing damn well that was not his name.

“Yes, sir.”

Steve knew that Danny was going to have a problem if they all called him _Sir_ . He still made faces every time Junior called him _Sir_.

“There’s five generation of Buffays living on this island.  I have read how you have saved this island from not one but two bombs.  I thank you both for not only saving my home but my family as well.” Phoebees saluted them both and carried his bag onto the plane.  

Joe took both Danny’s and Steve’s bags and followed Phoebees.

Danny was humbled by what Phoebees said.  “Still not going to tell me what’s going on, or where we are going?  Some kind of weekend warrior thing? And how is that going to help me?  Us?”

“You said you trusted me.  Board the plane, Danno.”

“What code name are you using from _Friends_?”

“I don’t understand.”  Steve really had no idea to what Danny was referring to.

This took Danny by surprise.  “All your little army men had character names from the television show _Friends_.”

“Navy.  Never watched it.”

“What?”  Danny made his way up the stairs.  “Were you raised in a cave you Neanderthal? Everyone knows that show.”

“Not me.”

Danny stopped mid step.  “Who are you?” He turned to hear Steve’s answer. Instead he realized that he was at the perfect height that he and his partner were eye to eye. He took advantage of his position and leaned into a kiss which Steve was more than happy to reciprocate.  The kiss said thank you, I trust you, and I need you, all at the same time.

“Danny this bird has to be off this rock before the shift change.”

“Why?”

“Because we don’t have an approved flight plan.”

“Does the pilot know where we are going?”

“Of course I do.”

This scared Danny.

“I’m kidding.  Maybe.”

Not long after, the plane was in the air making its way to destinations unknown.  Danny rifled through the magazine collection on board but nothing piqued his interest.  Steve on the other hand felt like he had hit the magazine lottery with the latest collection of _Guns and Ammo_ and other favorites.  Danny stared at the men on the opposite side of the jet.  They seemed lost in their own thoughts. Phoebees was listening to something through his earphones.  The two Gellers were having an intense conversation about what Danny had no clue. Chandler was reading a book, and at a closer look, the Book, the  Bible.  He seemed to find some comfort in it.  Danny didn’t want to dwell on it though because he would convince himself that Chandler was giving himself his last rights.  

Joe came out of the cockpit door and walked over to them.  “So, Danny, how are the kids.”

Danny wasn’t sure if this was Joe’s attempt at small talk.  “Getting bigger.”

“Steve told me that Grace will be driving soon and he is giving her lessons.”

Danny was glad that Steve would mention that to Joe.  He wondered how much he had told him.

“She’ll be driving better than me in no time,” Steve chimed in.

“I would hope so.”  At least Joe was being honest about that.  “Has my boy ever told you the story about the time he drove a supply Jeep into a lake?  Nothing but desert for miles and this guy drives into the only body of water to be found.”

“That’s classified Joe.”  Steve was hoping that little reminder would get Joe to stop talking.

“Not anymore it’s not.  Anything I can tell your partner to embarrass you, I can have declassified with a phone call.”

Danny put the _do tell face_ on so Steve got up from his seat.  “I’m going to see if Green needs anything in the cockpit.”

“I already warned him you were coming in.”

Joe took the seat that Steve previously occupied and started with the stories about Steve in basic training.  He threw in a few stories about Steve’s days in military school. Danny laughed so hard at one story that he found tears running down his cheek.  Every story was entertaining. Every story sounded like something Steve would do and deny. And in every story, somehow Joe was there. Danny knew it was tough on Steve when Doris was thought to be dead, and even more difficult on him when his father sent him and Mary away, but at least he had Joe.  

“I always knew that the two of you would end up together.”  Joe had a prideful smile.

The comment seemed to come out of nowhere and surprised Danny.  “How’s that?”

“After you called me to help get him out of the murder charge, I knew that you were someone very important in his life.  When we had to go to Korea to get him back, I saw that look in your eyes.”

“That look?”

“That look that says, if he lives through this I’m going to kill him.”  Joe was right.

“He does that to me a lot.”  It felt nice to have someone to tell that to.  “There are days that I wish I would have shot him the first day that I met him, and then there are those that I can’t imagine living the next day without him.”  Danny felt the lump in his throat as he said those last words.

“Trust me, he feels the same way about you.  When he called me and asked for help with this, I didn’t hesitate to say _yes_. ”

“Can you tell me what this is?”

“Sorry, son, that’s-”

“Classified.”  Danny had heard that before.

Steve came out of the cockpit and Joe moved over to give Steve back his seat.  “Are you done embarrassing me?”

“Oh, God, I hope not.”  Danny was serious.

“Not even close.”  Joe knew that his answer would cause Steve grief.

Steve rolled his eyes earning him a pat on the knee from Joe who then got up and checked on what his men on the jet were doing.

“He loves you, you know,” Danny said making eye contact with Steve.

“I know.  I feel the same way about him.  I just want to learn to trust him again, like I did, before Doris screwed things up.”

“You will.”

“I hope so.”

Danny looked down to realize that he was holding Steve’s hand.  Whenever there was a need, there was always a touch between them.  The connection kept them whole. Danny leaned into Steve resting his head into his shoulder.  He felt safe. “I hope this works.”

“It will.”  Steve held Danny’s hand a little harder.  “It has to Danny. I need you focused again.  I want us to get on with the next step of our lives, but you heard the Doc, it won’t work until you are good again. I miss my partner, my best friend.”

“It will work.  Whatever you have planned, it will work.”

Steve kissed Danny on the forehead letting Danny close his eyes in the kiss.

 

“Danny, Babe, I need you to wake up.”

Danny wiped his mouth and tried to focus on where he was.  “How long have I been asleep for?”

“Not long enough.”  Danny was out of his seat when he saw Joe’s men all checking their gear and weapons.

“What’s going on, Steve?”

Steve gave Joe a look that brought Joe over with a small black case in his hand.

Steve looked at Danny and asked, “Do you trust me?”

“Of course I do.”  Then Danny felt a sharp pain in his neck.  He turned to see Joe holding a large syringe that must have come out of the case he was holding.  “What’s happening? Why are you doing this?”

Steve helped Danny before he fell back into his seat.  “How long before it kicks in?”

“Less than a minute,” Joe answered.

Steve turned to Danny and smiled.  “Baby, you’ll be fine.”

Danny could feel his whole body go numb.  He gathered enough strength to say, “Promise?”

“Do you love me Danny?”

Danny nodded yes.

“Enough to marry me?”

Before Danny could process the question everything went black.

“That was the worst marriage proposal I’ve ever seen,” one of the Gellers chimed in.

Steve felt caught.

“Promise me, before you ask him again, that you’ll ask me on how to give a proper proposal.”  Joe looked disgusted.

Chandler came to Steve’s rescue with, “Says the guy with three ex-wives.”

Phoebees added, “I thought it was four.”

They all responded to that with, “The one in Mexico doesn’t count.”

It was black.  He was drowning.  No, there was no water.  He couldn’t breathe.

Steve turned on his flashlight that lit his face that almost scared the shit out of Danny.  Steve put his hand over Danny’s mouth to silence him. Danny slapped the hand away on instinct.  Now with the flashlight being tossed around, Steve was trying to make sure that Danny would stay quiet. Danny forced himself to breathe once he realized Steve was in the box with him.  He wasn’t alone. Steve reached for the tiny oxygen tank and covered Danny’s mouth with it.

Steve whispered into Danny’s ear, “You’re okay.  I’m right here. We will be out of here in a minute.  You’re okay. Trust me, you’re going to be okay.”

Danny stopped squirming long enough for Steve to remove the tank off of his mouth and replaced it with his lips.  

They were interrupted when the lid was lifted off the box.

“Get a room you two!”  

Danny looked up to see it was Phoebees saying that.  Danny jumped out of the box and realized that the box was a coffin.

“We’re clear,” Joe told his men.

“What the fuck, Steve!  Where are we? Why were we in a casket?  Why did Joe roofie me? What the fuck is going on?”

One of the Gellers handed Danny a bottle of water, and returned to his post at the window.  All of Joe’s men were stationed at windows, armed and ready for battle.

“And I swear to God, Joe, if you say it’s classified…”  Danny took a drink to try to calm his own nerves.

“We needed to knock you out to get you into the casket so we could get you in here. It's a viewing room attached to the church.  Nobody thinks twice when they see a coffin here.” Joe turned to Chandler coming through the back door with a very elderly lady walking with him.  “Steve thought it would be a good idea for him to get in there with you just in case you woke up before we got here.”

“Where’s here?  What the hell is going on?”

All the men turned to Steve to answer Danny.  “We’re in Colombia.”

“Excuse me.  Where?”

“Colombia.”

“I heard you say that.  Where in Colombia?”

“About five klicks from where we found Matty.”

“Why?”

“There’s some people that I wanted you to meet.”  Steve helped the elderly lady to a chair.

“Steve, we need to get out of here.  Reyes’ men-”

“Nobody knows we are here, Danny.  And there are no Reye’s men left. I’m worried about the Colombian government finding us here. Some of those guys are still a little pissed that we cut off their retirement package.  Trust me. Okay? Just sit here and I’ll explain everything.”

Danny hesitated, but then sat down behind the makeshift table.  Chandler had brought three more people into the room and sat them all down in the pews on the right side of the room.  Danny watched Joe as he inspected his own gun and for a moment Danny felt like he was in court, a kangaroo court with no way out.  Was Steve his defense lawyer? If so, he sure hoped Steve knew what he was doing.

“I figured if you heard what kind of man Reyes really was, you would understand that you, we, had no choice in what we did.  Okay? Just hear these people out, and then we will get out of here. I promise. Okay? Can you do that?”

Danny took a deep breathe, sat back in his chair and nodded to Steve.  He didn’t think this would work but he was willing to give Steve the chance he was asking for.

Senora Dominguez must have been in her late eighties and had every wrinkle to prove it.  She held tight to her cane that probably helped keep her tiny frame upright. Joey was the translator of the group and made sure he did not skip a word.

_When Reyes came into my village, he came with promises of food and money.  He told the people that as long as he had their loyalty, we would not want for anything again.  At first everyone believed every word he said. My people worked hard in the fields to keep him happy and our bellies full.  But soon Reyes was asking for more workers to process the fields faster. The children had to stop going to school and work alongside their parents.  Then the young women in the village were taken away in trucks. Reyes told us that he needed them to work to make the drugs that he sold to keep us fed, but less and less of them would return, and when the ones that did make it back home, they came broken.  At first they would try to fight off their rapists, but that did not last long. The selling of drugs we can live with. People chose to put that poison in their bodies. But the taking of the souls of the girls, we would not accept. My people refused to work the fields anymore.  We told Reyes to find another village. My husband was one of the elders and stood before Reyes to leave. Reyes grew angry and shot him in the face to prove to us that we would meet with the same fate if we refused to work. Instead my people stood their ground. Reyes grew even angrier and for upsetting him, he burned our village to the ground.  I had two children and four grandchildren that died in those fires that day. I asked God everyday why he let me live and not be with my family. Today, that answer came. It was to thank the man that ended Reye’s reign of terror._

She got up from her seat which prompted Joey to help her shuffle over to where Danny was sitting.  She took her hand and put it to Danny’s cheek. Danny could feel her bones through her thin skin. Danny knew enough Spanish to understand that she was thanking him.  Chandler walked her back to the door and they left together.

“That’s enough,” he told Steve.  “Let’s go home. Please.”

Steve came over to the table and whispered into Danny’s ear, “Not yet, Babe.”

He looked away from Steve to see that a priest was now sitting in the chair.  Joey was about to take his place to start his translation but the man in black waved him off.

“Mr. Williams, I am Padre Jose.  When we got word that the man that killed Reyes was returning to Colombia, we thought you a fool.”

That was something that Danny could agree with and he gave Steve a look to confirm it.

“But you, my son, you are no fool.  I wanted to tell you in person what you rid this earth of.  Reyes, was evil, the closest to the Devil himself. He cared for no one, he enjoyed the pain he inflicted on others and would do it again to make the day go faster.”

Danny listened to his words.  He had a true respect for any man that wore the cloth.

“I say this from seeing it first hand.”

Danny wasn’t sure if he was ready for another story.

“With my own eyes.”

Danny listened.

“Reyes needed my cooperation to bring in his drugs.  It seemed so cliché that I thought it was ridiculous.  When I told him _no_ I thought that I was done with him.  The next day the children in our orphanage were sick. Reyes had his men poison their food.  By the third day all but three of the children had died. He came back to me on the fourth day and asked if I had reconsidered my answer.”   The padre took a moment to look up at the Christ that hung above the pulpit. “Do you have children, Mr. Williams?”

Danny stirred in his own chair.  “Two.”

“They were all my children.  They were all mine to protect.  When I told him _no_ again, I knew I would be next.  A day later I heard what had happened to Reyes and his men.  At first I thought it was a miracle. Now I know it was you. You and your partner were the miracle.”

The priest got up and walked over to Danny.  He patted him on the back, and then he was gone.

Danny looked over to the last man that remained.  He made eye contact with him, then Danny jumped out of his chair so fast he knocked it over.  Looking back at him it was Reyes. Clear as day; staring back at him.

Steve jumped in front of Danny putting his hand on his chest telling him to calm down.

“Reyes!”  Danny pointed at the man who wasn’t moving.

“No, Babe.  It’s his brother,” Steve told him.

Danny seemed even more upset by that answer.  “That’s just as bad.”

“No.  He’s Caesar. “

Caesar took the chair that the other two witnesses had before him.  

“It is my turn, yes?” he asked Joey in Spanish.

“He wants to tell his story,” Joey told Danny.

Danny dealing with both the shock and the frustration of seeing Reyes before his eyes just nodded and sat back in his own seat.

_Although your brother did not deserve to die, mine did.  Marco was no good. He killed without thought or hesitation.  I wish I could tell you that he had a bad upbringing and that it wasn’t his fault.  But the truth is, we had a very loving family. Our parents were hard working people and did everything they could for us, but for Marco, it was never enough.  When my parents learned of the man that he became, they died in shame._

Joey paused thinking that Danny wanted to ask a question, but when Danny stayed quiet, he continued with the translation.  

_My only reason for living was for his benefit.  If he ever needed anything like a lung or kidney or heart, he had me in storage so he could rip it out of me without a second thought.  My only purpose in life was to be his spare parts. After you killed him, I was able to make a life for myself. Padre Jose lets me tend to his garden and work in the kitchen.  I will spend the rest of my life thanking him, Him and you. His sons now have a chance at a normal life. We have something we never had before. We have the chance to live in peace, as a family, not worrying that the my brother’s enemies will come for our heads one day.  We are finally free. I thank you. We thank you._

Caesar started to get anxious when Danny realized Padre Jose was back in the room.  He waved to Caesar to come to him and like a lost puppy, he did.

Danny could tell by the long pauses and the way that Caesar composed himself that this Reyes would not have the intelligence to take over for his brother.  He was weak in stature and feeble minded. Danny watched as Caesar walked over to the priest with Steve following closely behind him. Words were exchanged between the two and then Steve came back to the table joined by Joe.

“It doesn’t look like our last witness is going to show.  Father Jose gives his regrets.”

Joe looked disappointed for a second.  “You would have loved her, Steve, she reminds me a lot of you.”

Danny wasn’t having any fun following the conversation.  “That’s nice and all, but can we go please. I have had enough of this and this place.”

Steve gave his own look of disappointment.  Before he could say anything else, the back door flew open and in came a bombshell of a woman.

She was easily six feet tall and that was without the combat boots.  Her body and looks gave Lara Croft a run for her money. Her red hair was up in a ponytail.  She did a quick scan of the room with her hand ready to unholster the gun she had strapped to her thigh.  Once she realized that she was surrounded by Joe’s men, she gave a huge smile and jumped into Joe’s open arms.

“Mary Katherine!”  Joe hung onto her and introduced her to the room.  “Boys meet Sister Mary Katherine.”

She finally let go of Joe to shake Steve and Danny’s hand.  “I know, it’s the boots.” She said with an Irish accent. “Nobody believes the nun thing when they see the boots.”

Steve and Danny gave each other a look.  

“Sister Mary Katherine, it is a honor to meet you.”  Steve shook her hand again.

“Please, the pleasure is all mine Commander McGarrett and Detective Williams.  And please call me Katie.” She went back to Joe’s side. “Where’s the Padre? Skipped out on the beer he owes me?”

“He thought you were going to be a no show.”

“No show?  No way, and miss this chance to thank these two.  Hawaii’s finest.”

“You seem to know a lot about us.”  Danny finally chimed in.

“Please, you two are the closest things to angels that I will ever meet.”

“How’s that, exactly?”  Danny took his seat after Katherine sat crossed leg on the table in front of them.

“After you dropped off that eighteen and a half million dollars at the Saint Joseph’s, Padre Jose called me in from Belfast to get that money into the hands and mouths of those who really needed it.”  She scooted herself to the end of the table and put her boots on the side arms of Danny’s chair. She leaned in to say, “Do you have any idea how many lives you two saved? How many children on this side of the world will not go to bed hungry tonight because of the two of you?  We’ve been able to put a roof over their heads and shoes on their feet. Oh, and college, don’t get me started with the ones that we are sending to school. They will grow up to be doctors and nurses and lawyers,” she paused to catch herself saying that, “well, let’s hope not lawyers.”  She swung her leg over Danny’s head and jumped off the table.

Steve and Danny were quiet.  They knew what she said must be true.  Danny reached out for Steve’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

“There are angels that watch from above. Not to get too preachy on you both, because that’s not really my thing, but many forget that God sent angels down to earth to be his warriors and to fight evil. And then there are angels that wear badges and fight side by side, the good fight.”  She kissed them both on the forehead and thanked them again.

Joe gave her one more hug.  “It was good seeing you Sister Katherine.”

“I’ve got to hunt down Father Jose and get that beer out of him.  I’m due in El Salvador and I have to get going.” She gave Joe a kiss on the lips that every man in the room felt was completely inappropriate for her to do and it left Joe blushing.

They all watched her leave through the door she came in.  

Phoebees walked over to Joe with a disappointing grin in his face.  “Sir, if you weren’t going to hell before, you are definitely going now.”  All the men were nodding their heads in agreement.

“How do you feel?” Steve held on to Danny’s hand a little harder as he asked the question.

“I’m not sure,” Danny said honestly, “it’s a lot to take in.”

Geller walked over to Joe and handed him a small case.

Danny knew exactly what it was.  “Now wait a second. I am not going back into that casket and I am not, under any circumstances, letting you put another needle into my neck.”

Joe smiled at Danny and put his hands up in surrender.  “I’m not going to put a needle into your neck.”

Danny felt the sharp pain in his neck and turned to see the other Geller holding the syringe.  “That would be me, Sir.”

Steve caught Danny before he could hit the floor.  “Sorry Babe, it just makes it easier for us to sneak in and out of here past their military.”

Danny knew that he was fading fast. “I hate you.”  

“Let’s get these two home,” was the last thing he heard Joe say and everything went black again.

“I can’t believe you guys haven’t done it yet.  What’s wrong with you two?” Joey was more in shock than anything else.

“There’s nothing wrong with either one of us,” Steve said in their defense,  “and if you must know, and I believe that you don’t, this is the first time either one of us is in a-”

Before Steve could finish his sentence Joey interrupted with, “Oh, my God, you two went gay for each other.”

“It’s not like that.”  Steve tried to process the idea.

Chandler needed to add his two cents worth with, “It’s one hundred percent like that.”

“So you two haven’t,” Joey was about to make an obscene gesture with his hands and mouth but was stopped cold when Joe slapped him upside the head.  

Danny woke up to the noise of the plane’s engines.  His head was on a soft pillow and the men on the plane were coming into focus.  They were all staring at him. “Steve are you entertaining these bozos with stories of our love life?”

“If you two want any tips, you should ask Geller.”  Phoebees felt that he was giving steady advice.

Danny looked over to Geller.  “Not me, that Geller.” They all looked over to the other Geller who was talking on his SAT phone.

Geller, the one that had injected Danny earlier, put his hand over the receiver, “I’m not gay, but my boyfriend is.”  He continued the conversation as if he had not been interrupted.

Danny looked up to see Steve’s face filled with concerned.  It took a moment but he soon realized that his pillow was on Steve’s thigh.  He tried to sit up but Steve had his arm resting on Danny’s chest. Instead of fighting him, he rested his hand over Steve’s then interlocked their fingers together.  This was enough for Steve to know that it was okay to lean down into Danny and place a kiss on his lips.

“How do you feel, Danny?”  They both looked up at Joe when he asked the question.

Danny gave his answer some thought.  “To tell you the truth, like I’ve been asleep for days.  I feel great.”

Steve was elated to hear that response, so much so he went in for another kiss.  This time the kiss was more passionate making all the men uncomfortable as they watched.  “I’m going to check if Rachel needs help flying this bird,” Joe smiled as he said it.

Phoebees was trying to look anywhere but at Danny and Steve.  

They didn’t mind the audience at all.

~*~

Danny looked down at his watch for the third time in the same minute.  “I swear to God, Gracie, if you change one more time we are leaving you.”  Danny checked himself out in the hallway mirror. He looked good. He looked really good.  Happy was a good look on him.

“It’s not my fault,” she yelled from her bedroom, “Nahele said I looked fat in that dress!”

Nahele came out of the kitchen with Charlie hanging from his neck.  “No, I didn’t. All I said is that purple wasn’t her color.”

Danny bit his upper lip not to say something to Nahele that he might regret.  “You two go wait in the car.”

Nahele turned Charlie upside down carrying him out the front door.  

“Don’t do that, you’ll make him sick.”

Both boys responded with a chuckle.

Gracie finally came out of her room wearing a midnight blue dress.  Danny wanted to give her a hard time for taking so long, but he was stunned by his beautiful little girl coming out of her bedroom a beautiful young lady.  “Excuse me gorgeous, have you seen my daughter? Cute little thing. She was in their changing.”

“Thank you.”  Gracie kissed her father on the cheek.

He watched her as she made her way to the door.  Looking at his watch one more time, Danny gave out one more yell.  “Steve, let’s go! Everyone is in the car waiting!”

Danny turned to walk to the bedroom to put a fire under his boyfriend but he nearly walked into Steve instead.  

There he was.  All six handsome feet of him.  His suit brought out the blue in his eyes.  “I’m right here Danno.”

“I love you in this suit.”  Danny was forgetting how to breathe as he smoothed out the lapel of Steve’s jacket.  

Steve brought him into his arms.  “Oh yeah? How much?”

Danny adjusted Steve’s collar.  “Enough to want to get you out of it.”

Steve smiled into the kiss that Danny met him half way for. When he pulled back, the light in Danny’s eyes had shifted. “I never really thanked you.”

“What are you talking about?” Although Steve had an idea.

“Colombia. We wouldn’t be here if we hadn’t gone there.” Danny shifted up on the balls of his feet and pulled Steve in for a lingering kiss. Both men stopped when they heard the honking from the Camaro.  

“We gotta go.  Family date night has no patience.”  But Steve was full of patience, even if family date night was not. Danny had made a lot of progress in those six months since Colombia. He had opened up and let Steve in and refused to let thoughts of Marco Reyes run rampant in his head. It didn’t happen overnight. But Danny finally learned to tame the demons and allowed Steve to love him and let himself love in return. They had been doing this for over six months.  Every other Saturday, getting all the kids in the car. Every other Saturday and everyone was on their best behavior. “Go. I’ll make sure everything is locked up.”

Danny kissed Steve one more time and made his way to the door yelling, “Someone is in a lot of trouble when I find out who is pounding on that horn!”

Steve knew that the older ones put Charlie up to it.  He turned off the lights in the kitchen and then opened the closet door in the hallway.  He pulled some of the sweatshirts hanging to the right of the closet and took out a small box from one of his Navy sweatshirts.  He opened the box to make sure that the ring was in place. Steve looked back to the clothing. Danny was right. Six months ago, if they hadn’t gone to Colombia, he wouldn’t be pushing aside Danny’s sweatshirts and Gracie’s hoodies in search of his Navy one with a ring hidden in the pocket. His closet would have been just as empty as Danny’s ability to love him.

 

Steve kept his promise, to both Gracie and Danny. He figured out what it was going to take to fix him. But ultimately it was Danny that had to take the step to trust Steve and learn to let go. And he finally had done that and learned how to be happy again. Danny learned how to smile again and how to laugh. And he slept soundly for the first time in years. Both alone and with Steve tucked into his side.

This Saturday, unlike those other Saturdays, Steve was going to come home engaged to his soulmate.

 

**Author's Note:**

> My Beta, Happy29, spends so much time fixing my writing, that she loses a lot of time to write her own fan fic. That's when Beta crosses over to friend. Telling me that I have talent and pushing me to continue to write, that's when friend becomes best friend. 
> 
> We are all in this fandom because we believe in McDanno. At no time did I think I would ever find people that made me believe in myself.
> 
> You make me want to be a better everything, Christina, and I love you for that.


End file.
